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Looking for a pediatric specialty clinic? Cook Children's has more than 60 locations across North Texas, because even when your child's diagnosis is complicated, finding the right care should be simple.

Voiding Dysfunction

We're herefor you

Voiding dysfunction can be very uncomfortable and even embarrassing for a child. It can also be frustrating for parents and children. At Cook Children's we understand this. Our urology program is home to leading specialists who can help determine the cause of your child's voiding issues and resolve them.

What is voiding dysfunction?

Voiding dysfunction – when your child's bladder is not emptying normally – is a common condition among children, which is treatable. Our experts at Cook Children's Genitourinary Research, Education and Treatment (GREAT) Kids program have the knowledge, experience and expertise to help your child – and your family.

There is a less than 1% chance these problems are due to something structurally wrong with your child's body. Our team can help solve the problems by working with children and families to understand the child's specific condition. We are able to help families by working with them increase to the child's motivation to make behavioral changes, that can result in a resolution of their voiding difficulties.

What are the symptoms?

Voiding dysfunction, or dysfunctional voiding, can involve one or more of a range of symptoms. Your child may have wetting accidents during the day, an urge to empty the bladder frequently, may not pay attention to the need to urinate or may try to “hold it” for too long. He or she may have giggle incontinence, when the bladder empties during laughter or giggling. Or, your child may wet the bed at night, when the body doesn't recognize signals of a full bladder and the child doesn't wake up. Bladder control problems can also be related to frequent urinary tract infections, constipation and abnormal bowel habits.

Treating and caring for your child

Cook Children's GREAT Kids program features a team of physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, a clinical psychologist and researchers who are leading experts on voiding dysfunction. Members of our team attend national and international conferences to ensure that we are using evidence-based treatments with the most up-to-date information. Several of our team members have published articles on treatment of voiding dysfunction in medical journals and have given lectures on this subject.

Together, our caring and compassionate experts work with children and families to better understand children's conditions, and provide the best care and treatment possible.

We're here to help.

If your child has been diagnosed, you probably have lots of questions. We can help. If you would like to schedule an appointment, refer a patient or speak to our staff, please call our offices.